


What is Going On?

by FeliciaAmelloides



Series: A Oneshot a Day... [107]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Powers, Bad Puns, Cliffhanger, Confusing Plot?, Dying???, Gen, Getting lost in a forest, Hiking, Modern AU, OOC, school au, some violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-16
Updated: 2018-04-16
Packaged: 2019-04-24 09:45:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,323
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14352936
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FeliciaAmelloides/pseuds/FeliciaAmelloides
Summary: The Gaang are hiking through a forest as part of a school project. Mysterious happenings happen, and they get separated.





	What is Going On?

**Author's Note:**

> This ends on a cliffhanger and has a very unclear plot- just so you know.

“Why do we have to do this again?” Sokka whined for the sixtieth time since his group set off on their hike. His sister, Katara, huffed at her brother’s ignorance.

“Because, Sokka, the school set us this task and if we don’t do it we’ll lose credit.” As she spoke, she bent to examine a few sticks on the ground and wrote an excessive amount of notes about them. Sokka frowned distastefully, drawing a line on his own sheet to represent a stick.

“But it’s so boring! I mean, look. We’re in a super awesome forest right now with perfectly climb-able trees and loads of cool stuff to look at, and what are we doing? Making notes on _sticks_.” 

“Sokka! They’re not _sticks_. These are the remnants of life which has existed for thousands of years. We are literally writing history here, and you see it as boring?” Before Katara could enter full rant mode, another voice piped up from behind her.

“I personally think these sticks are hella cool to look at.” Toph smirked in the general direction of the fighting siblings, ignoring both Sokka’s heated look of indignation and Katara’s smile of gratitude (since, of course, she couldn’t see them).

“ _What?_ How could you think sticks are cool to look at Toph?! They’re just-oh. I see what you did there. Ha ha, very funny.” Sokka narrowed his eyes upon remembering that Toph was blind. Katara giggled, and Sokka turned his glare on her. Sensing a full-on brawl, the fourth member of the group aangxiously stepped in. 

“Guys, calm down! We’ll get through this much quicker if we don’t fight. Let’s just make the notes on the sticks, then leave.” As usual, Aang was the voice of reason amongst his group and the others quickly calmed to listen to him. Katara frowned, clearly dissatisfied but not as completely furious as she was before.

“Fine. Let’s get this over with.” She walked on ahead, seemingly trying to forget that any of them existed.

“Yeah.” Sokka agreed in the most angry way possible, stomping off after his sister.

“Yeah!” Toph yelled in a much more enthusiastic manner, still clinging to Aang’s arm so that she wouldn’t crash into a tree. If only she had some kind of power which enabled her to see through the ground...

Walking a little way behind the rest of his group was the fifth and final member. Zuko had been forced out of his ‘friend’ group (Mai, Ty Lee, Azula, Jin and Song) and into this one by their completely insane teacher known only as Bumi. He’d never particularly liked the four, especially Aang, yet he had no choice but to join them.

After walking for about another mile (Sokka and Katara still weren’t speaking to each other for the time being), Toph loudly declared that she wanted to rest. They had been walking for several hours already, and everyone was pretty tired, so they agreed and sat down in a relatively clean clearing.

While Katara made notes on the surrounding flora and fauna, Aang set about gathering snacks for the group. He only had Oreos in his bag, but they would do. He quickly shared them out with everyone, pausing when he came to Zuko. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) 

“Um, Zuko? Do you want one?” Aang asked politely, extending an Oreo to Zuko in a display of friendship. The brunet gave him a look of mild contempt despite actually wanting the Oreo, causing him to retract his arm and look away. Zuko internally sighed at the loss of a good Oreo.

Meanwhile, Toph, feeling bored, decided to try to reconcile the feuding siblings. She shuffled over to them carefully, feeling the ground for sharp objects and potential dangers as she went. “You guys gonna stop fighting now?” She asked, already treading on egg shells by talking to either of them, let alone both at once.

Both angrily shook their heads. Toph sighed in exasperation, then reached out with the speed of a good thief and grabbed both of their notes. Ignoring their sounds of protest, she flicked through each set. “Hmm... They both look about the same to me. So you should agree that you have enough notes to be able to have fun while we’re here, and also by the amount you’ve written that sticks in a forest are truly beautiful.” Speech made, Toph handed back both notes in the general direction of their owners. Sokka and Katara looked at each other in surprise before eventually nodding in consent.

“Then... you actually do care about the work?” She asked, twirling a few strands of chestnut hair.

“You actually agree that this is pretty boring?” He replied, fidgeting with his notebook. Both nodded in response to the other’s question. Toph just smirked, knowing that they had both conveniently forgotten that she was blind yet again. Sometimes that had its advantages.

Conflicts resolved, the three went back to Aang and Zuko (the latter of which they were ignoring, mainly because he was a dick) to resume their journey.

“According to the map, we need to head up north next. It goes uphill, but after that it slopes downwards. There are...” Aang checked the long-winded list of things they needed to write about, “five things left to find. So if we do one each, it’ll be way easier.” Smiling, he watched the group for their reactions. Zuko shrugged offhandedly in apparent assent, while Katara and Sokka nodded in united determination. Toph, however, did have an issue with this.

“In case you’ve forgotten, _I’m blind._ So I can’t exactly make notes about something I can’t see. Nor can I make notes. At all.” Everyone except Zuko, who had figured out just fine by this point that Toph could not see, made apologetic noises and looked away awkwardly.

“I don’t mind doing two.” Katara suggested, trying not to sound too excited. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) 

“I can help!” Sokka grinned and held up his incredibly detailed notes (three lines and an arrow pointing to them with the word ‘sticcz’ written underneath). Aang smiled at them both gratefully, taking Toph’s arm again so that she’d remain out of harm’s way (although admittedly she’d probably punch the tree down before she walked into it)

“Okay. You guys take the map and go on ahead. Toph and I will follow you. And Zuko...” Whirling around awkwardly, Aang finally addressed Zuko. As he was already resigned to his fate with these people, he waited for the bald boy to speak.

“You can come with us if you want!” ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) He decreed joyfully, obviously trying way too hard to include him. If he wasn’t so pissed at the all-too-clear implications that no one in the group (except maybe Toph, she was cool) really liked him, Zuko would be somewhat flattered. Instead, he nodded and finally spoke.

“Sure.” It was one word, but that was one word more than he had spoken since they got off the coach. That was a pretty good achievement when it came to the antisocial emo that Zuko was when he felt like it.

Aang’s smile never wavered as he happily spun back around to wave to Katara and Sokka, who were already halfway down the path. Sokka waved back enthusiastically while Katara just bowed her head slightly, already focused on the task ahead.

The remaining three walked in silence for a little while, not really sure what to say to each other. The sounds of the forest were clear in the silence, and Zuko found that he could really appreciate them more now that the group was quiet. Just as he was beginning to think that the hike wasn’t so bad, another sound echoed from up ahead. But not just any sound. 

A scream.

Instantly the trio was alert and on guard, listening out for any further noises. The scream had come from up ahead where Sokka and Katara were, and this knowledge made Toph break free from Aang’s grasp.

“I’m gonna check on them.” She said by way of explanation before running off in the direction of the scream, which was soon followed by another. Aang immediately followed after her, calling out, “Wait, Toph! You’re blind! Be careful!” as he went. Zuko quickened his pace too, not wanting any of the group to be in danger despite his dislike of them.

When they got to the scene, Toph, Sokka and Katara were completely missing. Zuko caught up to Aang and they both stared at the spot where the three should have been. All there was was empty path and countless trees blocking out the sun.

“Guys?” Aang spoke first, calling into the darkness for his friends. When there was no response, he took a step forward. Before he could stop himself, Zuko reached out and took his arm to stop him. When Aang turned to him, his expression was filled with confusion and the beginning of aanger at not being able to go after his friends right away.

“Wait,” Zuko said to make him stop, instantly cringing at the crack in his voice, “If they all managed to disappear going that way, it’s probably not safe. We should stay here and call the teachers for help.” That was the most Zuko had said in about three days. He was more focused on Aang, and on helping the group get back safely.

“But Katara had the radio! If they’re in danger, she can get help. We should go after them.” The incredible determination radiating from the shorter boy was kind of inspirational, and Zuko briefly saw him as some great powerful leader who bridged the way between humans and spirits- wait, what? A-anyway, he was inspired by Aang’s words.

“Okay. But if we get lost, it’s your fault.” 

“Deal.” Aang agreed to those terms easily, racing into the depths of the forest. Zuko hurried after him before they too got lost.

The deep forest was even darker than the path, and Zuko found that he could barely see a foot in front of his face. This was probably how Toph always felt, he thought. The two wandered through the forest shouting the names of their lost gaang-members, hoping that they could find someone, anyone, to tell them how they went missing in the first place.

After what felt like hours, Zuko quietly said one of their joint aangxieties aloud, “Maybe we took a wrong turn.” Aang sighed, leaning back against a tree.

“You might be right. We should turn back.” Pressing a hand to his forehead, Aang closed his eyes and tried to think. They had only been a few metres behind their group. How could they just go missing? And that scream... He hoped Katara was okay. It sounded like her.

Standing to full height, Aang started to walk back the way they came. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) Zuko trailed behind, also silently hoping that everyone was okay. He felt somehow guilty for their disappearaangce, despite the fact that it was most definitely nothing to do with him.

Two seconds later, the teenagers realised two seconds two late that they were walking in the wrong direction. Just one false step on loose earth they didn’t even know was there, and Aang, Zuko, a tree and some mud were falling down the side of a cliff, screaming like their lives depended on it (well, they were going to die...).

In mid-air, Zuko reached for the tree and climbed on, desperately trying to get to Aang before they reached the ground. Fortunately he made it, and they were both clinging to a tree as they fell down a cliff they didn’t even realise existed straight into...

A lake.

With a final yell, the two crashed straight into the lake and were immediately submerged in ice cold water, completely separated from everyone else. Zuko winced as he heard his left arm make a strange noise, and Aang tried to cry out underwater as his shoulder was knocked against the tree particularly hard.

Dizziness consumed him, but Zuko fought on, pulling Aang as best as he could with his one arm towards the shore. Somehow, by some miracle of the Blue Spirit, they managed to reach it and drag themselves out of the water, eventually collapsing onto the matted grass at the edge of the lake.

Aang gasped, coughing up water and trying to take deep breaths whilst Zuko sat up and checked his arm. He groaned when he saw that it was bent in the wrong direction and slowly turning purple. The groan became a scream when the pain finally hit him. The bald boy next to him moved closer, worry lining his brow. 

“Oh my gosh, your arm! Is it broken?” Aang was nursing his shoulder, which seemed to be badly bruised rather than broken. Zuko looked at him through half-shut eyes with a pointed glare.

“Y-yes.” He responded through a wince, watching for Aang’s reaction. The boy gasped as if he was surprised, quickly standing and looking around. He ran for a large plant near the edge of the tree-line by the lake and apologised quietly before pulling off a few leaves.

“Here.” He said with a weak smile, wrapping the leaves around Zuko’s arm and shoulder to form a makeshift sling. The brunet whimpered (a sound he would never admit to making in the future), but bore the pain. When it was finally over, he fell back against the grass and gazed into the sky.

“What are we gonna do?” He asked in a defeated way.

“We’ll find a way out. And we’ll get to the others.” Aang said easily.

“How are you so sure?” The unbearable pain was messing with Zuko’s head. He grimaced, biting his lip to suppress another scream.

“I know we will.” Using that Avatar-style determination, Aang once more inspired Zuko with his words.

The two got up with newfound hope and entered the forest to find... something.

**Author's Note:**

> As much as this makes no sense, I had fun writing it. There are lots of innuendos and awful ‘aang’ puns, but it was still fun.
> 
> This probably would have been Zuko/Aang if I wrote it out properly.
> 
> Prompt- Zuko being awkward.
> 
> I hope I achieved that???
> 
> Original Number- 230.


End file.
